Sponsor teleconference - Jimmie Johnson

Q&A's WITH JIMMIE JOHNSON:
YOU'VE HAD A GOOD COUPLE OF WEEKENDS AND YOU'RE GOING TO ATLANTA WHERE
YOU'VE HAD SOME SUCCESS. ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO IT?
"Yeah, definitely. It's been a busy couple of weeks. I'm still out in Las
Vegas for a ...

Q&A's WITH JIMMIE JOHNSON:

YOU'VE HAD A GOOD COUPLE OF WEEKENDS AND YOU'RE GOING TO ATLANTA WHERE
YOU'VE HAD SOME SUCCESS. ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO IT?

"Yeah, definitely. It's been a busy couple of weeks. I'm still out in Las
Vegas for a Lowe's appearance tonight with their store managers. And then
going into Atlanta, we have a busy day on Thursday with some (Jimmie
Johnson) Foundation stuff. So all in all, I'm excited about how the last two
weeks have gone, but there is still a lot of work going on and I'm looking
forward to getting on that race track and going for a third (consecutive
win)."

YOU QUALIFIED IN THE 20TH SPOT LAST WEEKEND AND THEN MOVED YOUR WAY UP TO
WIN THE RACE. CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT AND THEN QUALIFYING THIS
WEEK?

"Yeah, qualifying is so important but if you qualify bad enough it's almost
helpful. I mean we did qualify bad enough to where we had a good pit stall
pick. So like if you're going to be 10th, you'd rather be 20th or 30th at
that point. I know it kills you on track position but the races are long
enough that you can work your way up through there. So our biggest concern
was the pit road pick and luckily we got a good one and were able to take
advantage of it during the race."

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT RICK HENDRICK'S COMMENTS ABOUT YOU BEING LIKE A COMPUTER
WHEN YOU ARE DRIVING THE RACE CAR?:

"It was a heck of a compliment, I remember him saying that. I've worked
really hard to drive laps that I can repeat and to understand what I feel
underneath me in a race car. It's cool to be at this level and be able to do
things that I've always wanted to do in a race car. It's just taken a lot of
years and experience to get here, the right teams, right people around me
and stuff. I hope I can keep it up."

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT QUALIFYING UNDER THE LIGHTS AT ATLANTA AND DO
YOU HAVE A PREFERENCE OF QUALIFYING DURING THE DAY?:

"It doesn't really matter to me when we qualify. I think Atlanta is such a
fast track that when you strap in for qualifying I think you have to pull
them tight and know that you have to step up and get it done, but then when
you have the night factor I think you take another 20 percent with you and
just drive the car sometimes way over your head and way over what you think
you can do because the grip level is so high and hope that it's fast enough
to lead you to the pole. I don't really have a preference, but it does
usually add a little more grip and makes you attack harder with the night
qualifying session."

IS GETTING A GOOD PIT STALL AT ATLANTA MORE OF AN ADVANTAGE THAN OTHER
TRACKS?:

"It works the same really. Pit road is so important and the part of pit road
that is important is who you're pitted around. Last weekend we qualified
poorly and we were able to have or made a selection where the 00 (David
Reutimann) was behind us and the 38 (David Gilliland) was in front of us.
Once we got ahead of the 00, life was good because we had a clear pit in and
then the 38 went down a lap early and that gave us the clear pit out very
early in the race. If you can find those scenarios at any race track, that's
what you're aiming for and hoping for."

WHAT DO YOU WANT YOUR CAR TO DRIVE LIKE AT ATLANTA?:

"It really reminds me of Darlington where you just have to be very conscious
of what end of the race car is taking the abuse or what tire is slipping and
sliding too much. Every time you slide that tire, you're just taking speed
out of the car and especially off the tail end of the run. You're just
trying to be very aware of what tires work and looking for ways to get
around that, the balance and the load between all four tires. When you're
able to do that, your car typically drives very comfortable and you're going
to need that for 500 miles at Atlanta. It just kind of comes down to that --
making sure you feel all four tires being worked equally."

HOW ROUGH IS ATLANTA MOTOR SPEEDWAY?:

"It's rough and we all love it being rough. I know we've been through it
over the years where originally people were a little nervous that we were
picking apart the race tracks, but it's so rough and abrasive, it makes it
one of if not the most challenging race on the circuit, especially on the
long run. You're up near the wall and there's bumps and jumps and seams that
you have to worry about crossing over -- it's a handful."

WHAT KIND OF RELATIONSHIP DO YOU HAVE WITH THE OTHER HENDRICK DRIVERS AND DO
YOU FEEL LIKE THERE'S A WALL THERE NOW?:

"I wouldn't say there's a wall there by any means. Jeff (Gordon) and I, when
I was coming along, we spent a lot of time hanging out. On the friendship
level, there's a lot going on, he helped me meet my wife and there's just a
lot of time hanging out at that point. Life has changed though, he has a
wife and child and a second one on the way and I have my first on the way so
I think our paths or our roads have been in different directions lately. The
success on track, as a competitor, I know he doesn't like and it's not like
its put some burden on our friendship and now we're not friends, but
competition is a tough thing to deal with emotionally and people typically
find ways to motivate themselves by being angry in competition. If they find
a way to get mad at someone then it inspires them and pushes them hard to do
their jobs. I do the same thing for other guys, whoever is on top and
focusing on them. I understand the dynamic. My relationship with my other
teammates is great, granted I don't spend a lot of time with Mark (Martin)
away from the track or Dale (Earnhardt) Jr. for that matter. We all have a
lot of respect for one another and have fun when we do."

DO YOU DO ANYTHING DANGEROUS OFF THE RACE TRACK?:

"I would like to do more, but with my ability to injure myself, I've decided
to stay away from those things. Something I really miss and enjoy is
motocross. It's what I grew up doing, I love to ride, but it's just a matter
of time before you fall on a bike and when you fall you typically break
something. From motocross, I would say that even mountain biking is in that
same vein. I love to mountain bike, but I'm afraid to be out in the woods
and clip a rock or a rut or a root or something and go down and break and
collarbone. There are some things that I don't do from an adventure
standpoint that I feel like I could hurt myself at."

DOES YOUR DECISION-MAKING PROCESS GET EASIER OVER TIME AS A DRIVER?:

"Yeah, I think it does. At least it has for me so far. I'm sure there will
be different challenges later in my career and as time goes on. Today I
understand my sport so much better. I know what I need to do. I've been with
my sponsors and team and crew members for so long and we know each other so
well that's its not easy at all, but have made better decisions just because
its familiar stuff and I've been around it for so long."

WHAT MAKES DARLINGTON SO TOUGH?:

"I think at the end of the day it's the fact that track was built to run 80
miles an hour around or 100 miles and hour around. We're far above that. The
track is very narrow and odd shaped so to run the speeds that we do, it's
just a really awkward line and a really awkward track to race at. With all
that in mind, it makes it tough and where the name comes from."

IS THE NAME, 'LADY IN BLACK', A NAME YOU HEAR FOR DARLINGTON A LOT TODAY OR
MORE FROM YEARS PAST?:

"I guess it's both, it's the only way that I have known the track. It's so
well used, that phrase, that's I guess it's a little of both."

HOW WOULD YOU EXPLAIN A DARLINGTON STRIPE TO SOMEONE WHO IS NEW TO THE
SPORT?:

"I smile because we all will have one, it's just part of the race there.
With it being so narrow, it was more common with the track when the surface
was older on it. It's heading that way so hopefully it will turn into the
old Darlington once again. The track is so narrow and there's so much
slipping and sliding that sometimes you just run out of room and go up and
kiss the wall and lean against it to get you pointed in the right direction
and keep going on."

DO YOU DISCUSS WITH CHAD KNAUS HOW LONG HE WILL STAY IN THE SPORT AND DO YOU
FEAR THE DAY THAT HE WILL MOVE ONTO SOMETHING ELSE?:

"Fearing that day, I know that day is out there. It's a tough world for crew
chiefs and they really live in dog years in my opinion. I know there are no
immediate plans and so with that in mind, I'm just not really focused on it
to worry about it. Every time we're around and talking about stuff long
term, he doesn't have a date in mind or an amount of time left in him and
everything that we discuss is that we want to keep doing the same stuff that
we've been doing for years to come."

WHAT DID YOU THINK OF GEOFF BODINE'S INVOLVEMENT WITH THE UNITED STATES
BOBSLED TEAM?:

"It's been great to see the bobsled team and the success that they had. I
know that there are some drivers that have been working with Geoff (Bodine),
the fundraising for the Olympic team and the development of the bobsleds.
I'm very proud of him and it's great to see the technology and smarts and
all that come from our sport be applied to something that has been really
cool like the Olympics."